Archives

• Understanding Spring Jumping Worm Populations June 3, 2024

  Since at least 2013, non-native invasive jumping worms (Amynthas species) have populated several Arboretum forests. Jumping worms alter forests by quickly consuming large amounts of… Read more

• 2024 Arboretum Research Fellows Announced June 3, 2024

  The UW–Madison Arboretum is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2024 Research Fellowships. Four graduate students have been granted fellowships for projects that… Read more

• Jumping Worm Research Enhanced by Student Researchers September 29, 2022

  Non-native invasive species can negatively affect the conservation of native species, restoration goals for natural areas, and general ecosystem health. At the Arboretum, we manage… Read more

• Land Care Report: Continued Improvements at Faville Prairie May 2, 2022

  In September 2018 I wrote about the Arboretum’s historical connection to the preservation of Faville Prairie near Lake Mills, Wisconsin. I also… Read more

• Research Update: Lost City Invasive Shrub Management January 28, 2022

  Invasive plant species are prevalent in southern Wisconsin. Two common non-native invasive shrubs are buckthorn (Rhamnus spp.) and honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.). Landowners and managers allocate… Read more

• Land Care Report: Maintaining the Arboretum Grounds September 29, 2021

  The field staff wrapped up the spring burn season in May and jumped right into invasive species management and seed collection. These aspects of natural… Read more

• UW Arboretum Launches Community-based Research Survey on Jumping Worms September 27, 2021

  Jumping worms are a group of non-native invasive earthworms that are invading forests, gardens, and landscaped areas throughout the United States. The first confirmed population… Read more

• Most of Wisconsin has no native earthworms. What's with that? June 17, 2021

  Plenty of Wisconsin gardeners are suffering from worm confusion. Alarms sounded a few years ago about invasive jumping worms, ramping up the anxiety for a… Read more

• What’s with These Invasive “Crazy” Worms and Why Can’t We Get Rid of Them? May 6, 2021

  Tiny, wriggling horrors are hatching right now, under our feet, across the country. No, not the billions of Brood X cicadas emerging throughout… Read more

• Jumping Worms Are Eating — And Altering — Wisconsin's Forest and Garden Soils April 5, 2021

  After months of cold and snow, the arrival of mild spring weather is beckoning gardeners around Wisconsin. Yet increasingly, green thumbs are being tested by… Read more

• Arboretum Staff Receive Baldwin Wisconsin Idea Seed Project Grant for Jumping Worm Outreach March 30, 2021

  Seeing a need to learn more about the impact of jumping worms on native and ornamental plants commonly used in home landscapes, and then create… Read more

• Invasive Jumping Worms Damage U.S. Soil and Threaten Forests September 29, 2020

  What could be more 2020 than an ongoing invasion of jumping worms? These earthworms are wriggling their way across the United States, voraciously devouring protective… Read more

• As Summer Takes Hold, So Do the Jumping Worms July 22, 2020

  “At the University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum, study of the worms began after they were discovered on the grounds in 2013. ‘They may have a cascading,… Read more

• Marian Farrior Receives Invader Crusader Award July 1, 2020

  The Wisconsin Invasive Species Council has recognized Marian Farrior as a 2020 Invader Crusader. The awards are presented to individuals and groups for outstanding… Read more

• Cancel Earthworms January 23, 2020

  “In the absence of worms, North American hardwood forests develop a thick blanket of duff—a mille-feuille of slowly decomposing leaves deposited over the course of… Read more

• Invasive 'Jumping' Worms Are Now Tearing Through Midwestern Forests January 2, 2020

  “The writhing worm in ecologist Brad Herrick’s hand is still fairly new in town, but it’s taken only a few years for its kind to collectively damage swaths of… Read more

• The Impact of Urban Land Use on Aquatic Diversity November 4, 2019

  Equipped with waders and nets, members of professor Dan Preston’s UW–Madison aquatic ecology lab set out this summer to learn what is living in and… Read more

• Heat Kills Invasive Jumping Worm Cocoons, Could Help Limit Spread June 20, 2019

  New Arboretum research shows that temperatures of about 100 degrees Fahrenheit kill the cocoons of invasive jumping worms. But this is just an early step… Read more

• The Crazy Snake Worm Invasion You Haven’t Heard About February 21, 2019

  Earthworms may seem harmless, but they have the power to transform some of America’s forests—and not in a good way. Named for the way they… Read more

• Faville Prairie Brush Mowing Project September 30, 2018

  In addition to the 1,200-acre property in Madison, Arboretum staff manage eleven properties throughout Wisconsin that are owned by the University of Wisconsin Board of… Read more